Every year, the Amarillo Area Foundation hosts the Panhandle Gives event that begins on the Monday before Thanksgiving and ends on Giving Tuesday, the global day of giving. This year the dates are November 23 through December 1.
During this event, local non-profit organizations are eligible to participate and all donations made to the organizations through the Panhandle Gives campaign are amplified.
One of the organizations participating in the event this year is the Tralee Crisis Center in Pampa, a safe haven and beacon of hope for victims of domestic violence.
Founded in the early 1980s with the help of Altrusa International of Pampa, the Tralee Crisis Center has provided important services to survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, trafficking and other violent crimes in Gray, Carson, Childress, Collingsworth, Donley, Hall, Hemphill, Roberts and Wheeler counties.
The services provided include food, clothing, shelter, financial support, regular counseling, legal assistance, support, guidance, compassion and respect with the mission of empowering society to be free of violence.
“One of the goals we have as an organization is to bring awareness that domestic violence, sexual assault and other violent crimes are an issue here,” Executive Director at Tralee Crisis Center Penny Harvey said. “I mean there’s a lot of people in the community who have no idea. Either they haven’t been involved with someone or haven’t gone through it themselves, so kind of ‘out of sight out of mind’. So we’re trying to bring more awareness by the things we do, whether that’s through the store or by fundraising. We want people to know that these are issues.”
Tralee Thriftique, located at 110 N. Cuyler, is a resale store that promotes community involvement to help change the lives of victims and those less fortunate. Every item is donated by members of the community and then processed to the sales floor at reasonable prices. When customers purchase items from the store, the money goes toward providing a service to a victim of domestic violence or sexual assault. The beauty of the message and the entire goal of Tralee is reflected on the storefront, a design that came about not by accident or personal preference.
“When you see the name Tralee and you see that butterfly-the butterfly is about rebirth,” Penny said. “It’s about metamorphasis, it’s about change. It’s about not staying where you are. It’s about becoming who you want to be. That’s why the butterfly is so important because we don’t want people to stay stagnant. That’s not our goal. Our goal is to give them the tools they need to be who they want to be and to be able to move forward. That’s why we do what we do, to help them do that. It’s not our job to do it for them because they’re capable of doing it themselves and we get the privilege of helping them feel empowered to do that. That’s what I love about Tralee. We help them through the dark times to be able to be empowered to do so much more.”
“Our goal is to let people know that we’re here to help get them back on their feet and let them know they’re not alone.”
Tralee Thriftique is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 AM to 3 PM. They are always accepting donations of clothing for men, women and children, shoes and accessories, home decor, books, movies, music, kitchen utensils, potholders, towels, and other basic necessities.
For more information about the services the Tralee Crisis Center provide, call their 24-hour hotline, 806-669-1788 or 1-800-658-2796, or visit their website, www.traleecrisiscenter.org.
For more information about how you can donate during the Panhandle Gives campaign starting November 23, visit their website, panhandlegives.org.
